Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te has arrived in the US state of Hawaii for a two-day visit, sparking a furious response from China.
The trip is billed as a stopover as part of a Pacific tour, but comes amid long-standing tensions between the United States and China and growing concerns about the possibility of conflict at about Taiwan.
After arriving in Hawaii, Lai declared that the war would have “no winners” and that “we must fight together to prevent war.”
China's Foreign Ministry said it “strongly condemned” the visit and had “filed serious protests to the United States.”
China considers Taiwan – which broke away in 1949 following the Chinese civil war – as part of its own territory and opposes diplomatic engagement with other countries.
The United States has long maintained a deliberately ambiguous policy toward the island, refusing to recognize its independence but maintaining informal relations with its government.
Speaking before leaving for Hawaii, Lai said the trip marked “the beginning of a new era of values-based diplomacy.”
“Democracy, prosperity and peace are the expectations of the people of Taiwan, and these are also the values that I must actively promote as president,” he said.
He said he wanted to show the world that Taiwan is “not only a model of democracy, but also a key force in promoting global peace, stability and prosperity.”
Speaking Saturday at a dinner attended by state officials, members of Congress and Taiwanese residents of Hawaii, he added that his visit that day to Pearl Harbor – including the Japanese bombing in 1941 dragged the United States into World War II – had served as a reminder of “the importance of securing peace.”
“Peace has no price and war has no winner. We must fight, fight together to prevent war,” he said.
The remainder of the trip will see Lai visit the Marshall Islands, Tuvalu and Palau, the only Pacific island nations among the 12 countries that recognize Taiwan's independence. It will also make an overnight stopover in the US territory of Guam.
In a statement released before the trip, a Chinese Defense Ministry spokesperson said China would “firmly oppose any official interaction with China's Taiwan region in any form” and “resolutely crush » attempts to secure Taiwan's independence.
